Transformations
by Sariesavage
Summary: AU Avatar Story. In a world where people can transform into animals and war is raging, a young woman will not give up hope. "There is a girl who still has hope, a shifter by the name of Katara, she hopes the Avatar will return and bring back peace and order, she has lost so much because of the war but she stays strong for her tribe and her family, the family she has left."


**Transformations**

 **Author's Note: Hello everyone, this story is a challenge set by t-rex989.**

 **The challenge was to write an AU story where the characters of ATLA were animals or had the ability to change into animals. It also has to be a Zutara fic, the ability to be an animal will replace the ability to bend the elements.**

 **I would like to thank t-rex989 for setting the challenge and discussing what animals the characters will transform into and also for reading the first draft of this introduction.**

 **As always I would love to hear your feedback and comments :)**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own the characters featured in my story unfortunately, and the original idea for this is from t-rex989's challenge.**

Water. Earth. Fire. Air. Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. Then, everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked. Only the Avatar, a master shifter, could stop them, but when the world needed him most, he vanished. A hundred years passed and my brother and I discovered the new Avatar, an air shifter named Aang. And although his ability to shift into an animal of the air is great, he has a lot to learn before he's ready to save anyone. But I believe Aang can save the world.

 **Prologue**

Some people have the ability to shift their form, this skill has always been revered and is seen as a connection to the spirits, the form upon which you take is deeply connected to your own spirit and embodies it showing not only your strengths but also your weaknesses. This ability has been used in all ways of life, be that for farming, hunting, protection and for the last one hundred years… war. One nation wanted to have power over the rest and exploited this sacred gift for their own gains, now shifters must hide away from or resist the Fire Nations advances or they will be captured. Many have joined together to form a resistance however the Fire Nation have ruthlessly hunted shifters from the other nations for years and the resistance grows weaker every day.

The citizens of the Water Tribes live in areas isolated or surrounded by water, the people are known for their skills in fishing and transportation. The Earth Kingdom citizens live in the barren rocky areas of the world, many people are skilled in mining and building. The Air Nomads lived up in the mountains and were peaceful and spiritual people. The Fire Kingdom citizens are of a fiery nature living in the hottest areas, these people have a long history related to war, although long ago they were known for their cooking and hunting, some of the spiciest and most extravagant meals would come out of the Fire Kingdom where exotic plants grew in abundance in the heat.

Throughout history there has been a shifter able to connect with their spirit in a different way, taking on the forms of multiple animals, this ability set aside this person. Only one with this ability could exist, this person was the Avatar. The Avatar was seen as the bridge between humans and spirits therefore the avatar would keep peace between all the kingdoms, using their skills as a shifter. The balance between the human world and spirit world was upheld by the Avatar and was studied by many spiritual groups, especially the Air Nomads.

The Avatar has not been seen in a hundred years, the reasons for this are unknown but with the Avatars disappearance the Fire Nation rose up to oppress the other nations, many people have lost hope and will put no faith in the tales of the Avatar. The Fire Kingdom has spread destruction and pain across the world and many live in fear each day.

However, there is a girl who still has hope, a shifter by the name of Katara, she hopes the Avatar will return and bring back peace and order, she has lost so much because of the war but she stays strong for her tribe and her family, the family she has left.

There is also a boy who has hope, a shifter by the name of Zuko, he hopes the Avatar will return so he can capture him or her, earning glory for the Fire Nation, regaining his honour and most importantly to earn favour with his father.

Somewhere deep underground, below the snow and ice, a body lays frozen perfectly preserved and has been for long time…


End file.
